"Afghan youth have very limited options for sports and recreation. An Australian man is trying to change that." Issues of ethnicity, class and gender are right on the surface. Globalization, cultural values and shifting norms make this a good discussion piece.

This is an inspirational video it is very powerful to see someone trying to make life better. The young Australian man that has created this program should be applauded. Watching this video you can tell that this simple gesture brings so much joy to these children. One feeling that comes to mind is yes countries can seem different but they can also seem familiar. These children are just like any others they want to play and have fun. I think this is a wonderful program for them to help them forget about the dangerous world they live in.

This is a good example of the use of soft power in areas where American culture is not popular. Instead of using military force to exert western Ideals on the people of Afghanistan. This Australian may have found a way to close the gap towards bringing our cultures closer together.

In a society that is seen by most of the world as strict and rigid, it was interesting to see these children having fun and breaking the mold of traditional afghan kids. What makes this even more fascinating is that female children are doing some of the skating. With gender issues a hot topic in some Middle Eastern countries, letting kids have fun before being made to conform to tradition is a nice experience for them. While they still respect the culture to they belong to, it is a break from that and a breathe of fresh air for them. These youth are not seen primarily as men and woman, but as children.

"Did you know that Swedish has more in common with Hindi than it does with Finnish? Explaining everything within the limits of the world is probably too ambitious a goal for a list like this. But here are 23 maps and charts that can hopefully illuminate small aspects of how we manage to communicate with one another."

This article links with Unit Three through "language and communication". These 23 maps range from the history of languages, which languages connect with which, common languages in certain places, different phrases used in the same country for the same thing, and more. Looking at maps to spatially see language helps when trying to understand how the world communicates. One of the maps that I found interesting was the "New York tweets by language". It shows how diverse that city is, and how people are still preserving their native language in a English prominent country.

Shows how many languages are actually closely related. Whether or not they sound the same or are located in similar regions, many share the same origins. For example: many words in Spanish and English are the same due to their similar roots.

"Self-taught Iranian photographer gains rare access to shoot religious buildings as they've never been seen. It's a side of Iran the rest of the world doesn't normally get to see -- the kaleidoscopically brilliant interiors of the country's intricately designed mosques.With beautiful mosaics and stained glass framed by powerful architecture, the buildings are astounding."

This was one of my favorite articles. We usually are very used to seeing negative sides to the Middle East and this gave it a different spin. This shows breathtaking pictures of the Mosques in Iran. This architecture isn't like anything I've seen with all of the symmetry and colors. These photos were taken by a student and were not easily taken. You have to have an eye to capture moments like this and pictures like this are not always appreciated. the detail that went into creating and designing these mosques are really special and I would love to actually see something like this in person.

Amazing photos of these mosques. The detail and color in some of these mosques are extraordinary. This kind of brilliance in color is something that is unexpected in this part of the world where everything seems to be so bland and alike in color or style. Its surprising that the mosques don't let professional take pictures with certain equipment inside but let tourists take photos. I would understand if the light from a camera could cause damage to the art, but these are the people who will be able to share these beautiful pictures with the rest of the world and show that there is more to Iran than what the outside may think.

"Sometimes, rehabilitating a rough neighborhood is a tough process. But in one West Coast American city, it was as simple as adding a Buddha statue. Since the statue's installation, a street corner has been transformed from a notorious eyesore to a daily prayer spot for local Vietnamese Buddhists. For this Geo Quiz, we're looking for the city where this shrine is located — can you name it?"

"A new report released by the Pew Research Centre has found that the proportion of Catholics in Latin America has dropped 25% since 1970. One of the primary drivers for the rise in the numbers leaving the Catholic Church? Conversion to Protestantism."

I've watched Passion of the Christ and one thing that I've learned was that the language that was spoken in Jerusalem was Latin. Regardless of whether someone was raised Catholic or Protestant, they still practiced the Christianity faith. Also based on one scoop that I looked up, Christianity was spread overseas from Europe to Latin America (South America).

This article was interesting to read because it shows a different aspect of Latin America and touches on religion. It states that the portion of the area that is Catholic has dropped 25% since 1970 because the Protestant percentage has gone up and reached 19%. The reason that the Protestant percentage has risen is because many of those individuals have converted when the majority of them have been raised Catholic. These individuals all have different reasons as to why they converted over but this jump is more recent and continues to grow.

The rate of people who religiously identify as Catholics has decreased sharply in the last forty years. In Latin America, where majority of population exhibit strong beliefs in Catholicism, citizens are rapidly shifting to different religions such as Protestant, or denouncing their religion all together. New generations are skeptical to believe in God. However, the new century has also brought about different issues, where practicing Catholics are reportedly victims of sexual abuse, sometimes by their parish priest. Furthermore, younger generations are more open minded and accepting of controversial topics such as gay marriage, homosexuality, and lesbianism. Demographic patterns have shifted these large communities and suffered a decrease of numbers equal to approximately 20%. With new innovations, technologies, and different patterns of living, the Catholic Church is being overlooked by more communities as a preferred religion.

Khanh Fleshman's insight: This relates to Key Issue #1 because it shows the distribution of religions on a national scale. It also highlights the dominance of Christianity and Protestantism in the US.

Graham Shroyer's insight: This relates to key issue 1 because it shows the prevalence of christianity, a universalizing religion, in the US.

Vinay Penmetsa: This relates with the section, showing how Christianity is an universalizing religion, and its distribution in America.

Zahida Ashroff's Insight: This relates to Key Issue #1 because it shows the distribution and density of Protestants in the U.S. This map shows that the highest density of Protestants occur oin the South-Eastern region of the U.S.

Rishi Suresh: This relates to the distribution of denominations within America. It shows how the distribution is related to the patterns left by the original settlers.

This diagram was cool to see how different states are composed of which different religions. I liked how you could choose either a religion to see as where is predominately stronger and in what states. Or we could see what religions are predominate in which states.

Unit 3 cultureThis diagram shows the percentage of adults by region to their corresponding religions. This demographic is part of America's major parts in its own branches. It shows highly developed religions like christianity and lower developed ones like Buddhism. This is an informative demographic.

This demographic relates to unit 3 because it shows how religions develop in different areas over time and pressures individual movements. It shows group organization throughout the u.s. and this is a cultural aspect of unit 3 that is very well touched upon. It is an overall demonstration of unit 3

Christianity. Islam. Judaism. Buddhism. Hinduism. All the major religions have basically competed with each other in an epic, historical game of Risk. Who can gain the most converts? Which religion is the most right at being right?

Unlike the distribution map of the USA, this map shows the entire globe and the religions distributed across it. This map shows major universalizing religions that have conquered ethnic religions and how that has impacted the clustering and location of the religions.

Khanh Fleshman's insight: This relates to Key Issue #1 because it shows why the major world religions are distributed as they are today. It shows the determining factors of how far a religion would distribute.

Rishi Suresh: This shows how universalizing religions dominate the religious landscape in most of the world. Ethnic religions like Hinduism are mostly limited to one area.

Vinay Penmetsa: This map shows how religions has spread rapidly through the world, and how universalizing religions religions are young, and have the largest following, while ethnic are smaller and in smaller areas.

Graham Shroyer's insight: The map shows distribution of religions around the world and this relates to key issue 1 because it shows how ethnic stay close and universalizing spread around.

Zahida Ashroff's Insight: This relates to Key Issue #1 because it shows the distribution of major world religions as they spread throughout the world. The different major world religions are shown to distribute in different places.

This video shows the movement and reasons of religions moving and dominating empires and movements. This is a definite example of a great reasoning behind the dominance of the major religions over a large period of time. It creates a definite part of the religious unit.

This video relates to unit 3 because it shows how much religions impact the world through their spread and their influence. It is centered around religions therefore showing the parts of unit 3 and relating it to it overall.

The University of Wisconsin-Superior is in one of the least ethnically diverse regions of the United States and the university is partnering with other local organizations across that region aimed at highlighting structural advantages within society for Caucasians. This campaign to make 'white privilege' visible has not surprisingly generated controversy and has made race and its impact of society an issue quite visible, to the discomfort of many. The author of the book, "Colorblind," speaks about this issue on PBS as he argues that the United States is not in a post-racial society.

Questions to Ponder: In what tangible ways can you see 'white privilege' in our society? Is this ad campaign a good idea? What does the term normativity mean and how does it relate to this topic?

I believe this campaign is being made aware in the Wisconsin area of the U.S. because the population is primarily white. Therefore, this region may be trying to make its people aware of the fact that racism can still exist even though this region may be ignorant to this issue. And this region is not to blame for its ignorance because a vast, non-diverse racial community is all they are exposed to, and all they know.

I think some people feel that pointing out institutionalized bias feels as though the campaign is blaming them for simply being white. I had a special blue ticket to go to the front of the DMV line today and I was thrilled but it made me think about the others still waiting. There's an analogy in there but I don't want to force it.

There is no logic as to why whites should be treated better than the blacks. It is society being biased and we could make a difference. A colour shouldn't define a person's personality, fate, or future. We should not be biased towards them but instead, give them fair and equal opportunities as any other people. I personally do not think racism should be a problem in the first place. What makes them discriminate blacks and make them lower than the whites in the first place? I hope something can be done about this.

Area/Geography: This is a diagram of what Israel is like for Palestinians and Israelis. It shows extremely restricted access for Palestinians. Whereas Israelis have all of the roads. This diagram fairly falls under the Area/Geography category because of the fact of how the Israeli government is manipulating the area/geography of the land of Israel to suit their best interest.

What a powerful image and message that is being represented.As a geography student and someone who is newly learning of this area this segregation was a surprise to me.

Israelis are able to access all roads while Palestinians are forbade from doing the same. Palestinians are restricted to only roadways and passages that are outlined in white.I was also interested to know that the officials that enforce these rules are able to tell if someone is of Palestinian decent by the color of a your license plate. This seems to be such an unfair practice. It does not seem that Palestinians are treated as equals in this area.

Here one can see the political territoriality among Israel. For example in this article webpage we saw that people with Palestinian license plates can not drive on Israeli roads. This is one of the many instances where people are segregated according to their beliefs.

MEXICO CITY — Juan Chiu Trujillo was 5 years old when he left his native Mexico for a visit to his father's hometown in southern China. He was 35 when he returned.

Migratory patterns and globalization can lead to some intriguing cultural blends that would seem improbable 100 years ago. This story of shows vividly how ethnicity does NOT always correspond to culture.

What a journey that must have been, to not return to your country for 30 years after going on vacation. Apart from the personal story in the article, the notion of ethnic groups that we practical never hear of is really interesting. While it makes sense that there were Chinese people in Mexico, it's just something which I never actively realized. There should be a book of ethnic conflicts which never make the well-known history books, if there isn't one already.

Since the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the Kurds have been caught in other people's plans for what the states of the Middle East should look like and are the largest 'stateless nation' in the world. Divided between Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey, the Kurds have not been able to politically mobilize support for Kurdistan as they have been violently oppressed in these countries. The Kurds in Iraq have been able to gain political autonomy with the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, and the Syrian Kurds are hoping to do the same if and when the Assad regime crumbles at the end of the civil war. This make Turkey concerned that the Kurds in the southeastern part of Turkey will make renewed efforts to push for sovereignty.

UPDATE: This PBS feature explains the historic timeline of the important political events for the Kurds in Iraq.This article from the Economist focuses on the key reason that outside forces won't leave the Kurds alone: oil.

The terms cooks enter into search engines can provide clues as to what dishes are being cooked around the nation.

Some fascinating (if not entirely scientific) maps that show the most common searches on www.allrecipes.com and regional differences in food preferences. More importantly, it also is an interesting glimpse into the geography of language. Some similar dishes are called by more regional names (e.g.-"Stuffing" in the Northeast and West, "Dressing" in the Midwest and South). This set of maps also reinforces the concepts of regions. This is a fun way to teach some actual content and enjoy the holiday.

This falls under the category of language because the map shows the spatial distribution of different languages in the United States. It can be used to draw county lines perhaps and allows companies to cater to certain languages common in the area.

“The Midwest is this big nebulous part of the country and it's kind of what's left over after all the other regions of the country are defined. Those regions have much stronger identities if you think of the East Coast or maybe New England or the Pacific Northwest or certainly the South. The Midwest is kind of the catchall for what's left. We [Minnesota] should be called the North.”

Whether I agree or not with the ideas being discussed, I simply love that this discussion is taking place and how intensely geographical the ideas and evidences being brought forward are.

Questions to Ponder: So what region do you live in? What defines that region? Are there other regions that you can claim to be a part of also? How would you divide the United States into various regions? How come?

Summary- Hundreds of churches around Europe are being closed and sold to other people. This is due to the lack of membership coming from the people that used to go there. People are turning these churches into various things such as skateparks. I think this is a very disrespectful act, turning a place of worship into a place to destroy.

Insight- In Unit 3 religion is a big part. From this article, we can ask ourselves why the memberships of churches are declining. Do be just not care anymore? Are people moving away? Although the answer is no stated in this article, I think people there are just not as devoted to church as they used to be.

Europe’s Empty churches going on sale is not upsetting to me, unless they are being used as skateboard parks. The main reason to the church’s closings are a rise in secular beliefs. With less people attending and making tributes to the churches they are given no choice but to shut down. These are buildings of great archaic integrity and I think that they should be sold to museums or to state governments as holy sites or something to that effect. These buildings should be preserved because they are a giant standing living history of this world. But as of now skate ramps and parks occupy these churches and may be damaging them.

Empty buildings now turned into just churches used for fun, or by the picture skateboarding. Europe is always known as the power house especially during their colonial period, when they colonized Africa and brought some of their religious beliefs towards the Africans. Europe is filled with big catholic traditions tracing back to the past, but now with this going on its a very sad state seeing something so significant in history in the European community go to waste..

"This map illustrates the country's deep division – and why the protests might not be what you think. Ukraine has been wracked by protests for two-plus weeks over President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to reject a deal for closer integration with the European Union. Russian President Vladimir Putin had been pressuring Yanukovych to quit the EU deal and join with a Moscow-led trade union of former Soviet states instead. Will Ukraine's future be with Russia or with Europe?"

The Ukraine is divided along Ethno-linguitic lines. Even within the borders of Ukraine there are contrast in the characteristics of local communities. Some identify with Russia, others with Ukraine. The borders of Ukraine are likely to change because there are such differences between its citizens.

Ukraine has been wracked by protests for two-plus weeks over President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to reject a deal for closer integration with the European Union. Thousands of protesters in the capital city of Kiev are calling for Yanukovych to step down. This is a potentially big moment for Ukraine, as well as for Europe: Russian President Vladimir Putin had been pressuring Yanukovych to quit the EU deal and join with a Moscow-led trade union of former Soviet states instead. Will Ukraine's future be with Russia or with Europe? What's happening in Ukraine is complicated and driven by many factors: the country's history as an unhappy component of the Soviet Union, its deep economic woes, a sense of cultural fondness for the West, wide discontent with government corruption, two decades of divided politics and a sense that Yanukovych caved to Putin.

Red indicates violent protests over the film, yellow indicates non-violent protests. Click to enlarge. Protests against the anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims have erupted in cities from Morocco to Somalia and Pakistan to Indonesia, an agglomeration of otherwise disparate societies that we sometimes refer to as "the Muslim world." That phrase appears today in headlines at, for example, CBS News, the U.K. Telegraph, Radio Free Europe, and many others. A very handy interactive map of the protests so far, produced by The Atlantic Wire's John Hudson, shows just how widely the protests have spread across the diverse Muslim societies of the world.

Watch The First Grader trailer and make a difference! For every trailer viewing on YouTube, Capella University will donate $.50* to the following organizatio...

The geography of education can provide some heartbreaking as well as heartwarming stories. This trailer shows the distinction between traditional and popular cultures while highlighting conflicts based on ethnicity and nationalism, all within the post-colonial context in Kenya.

A new interactive tool allows you to decide how many Israeli settlers to annex and what constitutes a viable Palestinian state.

This article from the Atlantic is a great introduction to a mapping tool that puts the user at the virtual negotiation table. Peace talk proposals often center around the amount of land that Palestinians want and the Jewish settlements in the West Bank that the Israelis want as a part of the state of Israel. This interactive, titled Is Peace Possible?, allows the user to propose potential land swaps, see the demographic breakdown of West Bank settlements and videos to introduce users to on 4 major issues: borders, security, refugees and Jerusalem.

Questions to Ponder: How to political borders reveal and conceal "the truth" about places on either side of the line? What elements are a part of a regions heritage? Can regions have multiple, overlapping heritages? How does devolution impact the whole country?

Being an eighth Tyrolean, I remember my great uncles and other family members complaining about this at every family reunion. Newer generations in my family would refer to themselves as Italian, and the arguments would ensue. That being said, it is no surprise that those living in what was once Tyrol have faced conflict. Historically, peoples with languages, cultural heritages, or religions that differ from the rest of a country usually hold grievances. During the time of Mussolini, Italians were encouraged to move to the northern reaches and Italian was forcibly taught in the school systems. Italy's past of forcing the Austrian speaking Tyroleans to assimilate into a more Italian culture may remain, but fortunately, they have worked to preserve their culture. The bilingual nature of this region allows for the people to thrive in business and tourism. Unfortunately, this autonomous state is facing dark times as Italy's financial crisis puts pressure on South Tyrol by increasing taxes. Many see this as a continuation of Italian oppression on a not so Italian demographic.

For over 1400 years, Mecca has been one of the most important cities in the Arabian Peninsula. By the middle of the 6th century, there were three major settl...

As the heart of Islam, Mecca brings in pilgrims from around the world. This documentary gives a great overview of the historical, spiritual and cultural reasons why this is sacred space to over one billion Muslims. Additionally, this documentary contains an analysis of the logistics that are a part of the Hajj.

Sharing your scoops to your social media accounts is a must to distribute your curated content. Not only will it drive traffic and leads through your content, but it will help show your expertise with your followers.

Integrating your curated content to your website or blog will allow you to increase your website visitors’ engagement, boost SEO and acquire new visitors. By redirecting your social media traffic to your website, Scoop.it will also help you generate more qualified traffic and leads from your curation work.

Distributing your curated content through a newsletter is a great way to nurture and engage your email subscribers will developing your traffic and visibility.
Creating engaging newsletters with your curated content is really easy.